Hat-fastener.



No. 629,026. Patented July l8, I899.

W. N. BREWER.

HAT F-ASTENER.

(Application filed Aug. 19, 1898.)

(No Model.)

INVENTLDE' ATE Prion.

WILLIAM N. BREWER, OF CLEVELAND, OHIO.

HAT FASTENER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 629,026, dated July 18, 1899.

Application filed August 19,1898.

To aZZ whom it may concern:

Beitknown that I, WILLIAM N. BREWER, a citizen of the United States, residing at Cleveland, in the county of Ouyahoga and State of Ohio, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Fastening Devices for Ladies Hats; and I do declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, which will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

My invention relates to a fastening device for ladies hats; and the object of the invention is to provide a safe and secure means which when attached to the hat will firmly hold the hat upon the head without marring or otherwise disfiguring or injuring the hat or being of inconvenience to the user, all substantially as described, and particularly pointed out in the claims.

To overcome the objections to large hatpi11s,which ladies are almost universally using at this time, and to provide a device which will be simple in construction and adaptable to any shape or kind of hat, I have designed the fastener shown in the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a sectional view of a hat with my improved fasteners attached thereto, one

'tion.

at each side, the one at the right being shown as entering the hair of the wearer and the one at the left as locked and in fastening posi- Fig. 2 is a perspective view of the fastener as it is sold to the trade, the prongs beinfree and the tongue loose in its slots. Fig. 3 is a similar view to Fig. 2, but showing the prongs looked, as is the case after the device is attached to the band of a hat. The tongue is also shown in looking position in this view. Fig. 4: is a plain elevation of the body-plate of the device as struck up out of one piece and before being shaped to final form. Fig. 5 is a perspective view of a modified form of tongue.

The fastening device thus shown consists of two parts, designated by 2 and 3, respectively, part 2being the body-plate, which is attached to the sweat-band a or inner lining of a hat, and part 3 the tongue, which is supported by the body'plate 2 and adapted to be inserted into the hair to hold the hat upon the head. The body-plate 2 is in this in- $eria1N0. 688,959- (No model.)

stance understood to be cut out of a single sheet of metal in the form substantially as seen in Fig. 4 and is then struck up into final shape, with a flat body 5,-having an inclined face 6 and projecting ledge 7 at its lower end. Prongs 8 at the sides of said plate and forming part thereof at the top end are shaped and arranged to be parallel with the face of the plate, but on a different plane, and it is by means of these prongs when they are inserted and fastened in the hat-band or lining of the hat that the device is attached and held in place. The prongs enter and pierce through the hat-band at a predetermined elevation and are then forced down, where they again pierce the band and came out ata point where the band is sewed to the bottom of the rim of-the hat. The face of the prong now lies between the wall of the hat and the band, the body 5 lying flat against the other side of the band and the ledge 7 coming at about right angles underneath the rim and turned edge of the band. The end of the prongs 8 extend beyond the ledge 7 a very slight distance, and when the plate 2 has been attached as described the prongs are locked by springin g the ends into pockets or catches 9,formed at each side of the ledge 7 This firmly holds the plate in place on the hat without making any outside or exposed engagement, and, if desired, it can be as readily and quickly removed as it has been put on, the entire operation being simply and easily accomplished. It also is so small relatively and is so placed in the hat as to be wholly out of the way and not be uncomfortable in wearing.

When the plate 2 is attached, the tongue 3, forming the operative part of the device, is also attached, the two being inseparable in the sense that the tongue remains a part of the body after being assembled. Said tongue 3 passes through a slot 10 in the ledge 7'and a slot 11 in the inclined face 6, and, though free to slide back and forth longitudinally, is held from escape by the shoulder orprojection 12 at the bottom and the enlarged and rounded end 13 at the top. The end 13 is formed or ultimately shaped after the two parts have been assembled, a single blow of a hammer being sufficientto flatten the metal and spread the same to a greater width than the width of the slot 11. The width of the tongue 3 is substantially the width of the slots and 11,

allowing the tongue to slide freely, but with no side play, and as the slots 10 and 11 are arranged some distance opposite each other 11 is somewhat larger than the thickness of the tongue the said tongue is free to change the angle as occasion and necessitydemand. Usually the tongue enters the hair at about an angle of forty-five degrees, and as it is pushed upward to its limit a spring 13, formed in or connected with the lower face of the tongue, bears and compresses against the edge of slot 10 and inclines the tongue to a greater or less degree and grips or binds the folds of the hair between the plate 2 and the tongue 3. A shoulder orledge 14 on the spring 13 snaps into the slot 10, and the tongue is thus held up in position until released. The end 15 of the tongue and end 16 of the spring project a slight distance below the rim of the hat and are curved and extended to permit an easy engagement by the lingers of the op erator.

The advantages of this construction are several; the first of which consists in the firm and secure hold that the fastener obtains in the hair to hold the hat on the head, the ease and certainty of manipulation, and the concealed and hidden arrangement of the fastener. There is no marring or destroying of the hat, as is the case with pins, the means for attaching the fastener being simple and eifiicient and confined to the sweat-band or lining. Then, again, the construction of the fastener in two parts, struck up out, of sheet metal and assembled as described, simplifies andcheapens the cost of its manufacture to such an extent that it can be sold for a very small sum.

A slight modification of the tongue 3 is shown in Fig. 5, where a spring 17 on one side of the face and a teat 18 on the other side are shown to hold and confine the tongue when pressed up to its limit.

What I claim is 1. In a fastener substantially as described, the body of the fastener having a pin at each side edge to secure it to ahat,'and a shouldered opening at its lower end between the points of said pins for the passage and engagement of the tongue, in combination with the tongue through said opening and a spring to hold the tongue in place in the body of the holder and in engagement with the hair, substantially as described.

2. Afasteningdeviceforladieshatshaving abody with a pin at each side edge and a ledge transversely across its lower end and a lip 7 projecting outwardly from said ledge at the rear of said body, in combination with a tongue extending through said rib and a springbearing against the inner edge of the lip 7 to keep the tongue in working engagement, substantially as described.

Vitness my hand to the foregoing specification this 15th day of August, 1898.

VVILTJAM N. BREVER.

Witnesses:

H. E. MUDRA, R. B. MOSER. 

